CBDT Notifies Income Tax Exemption for Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency under Section 10(46)

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) under the Ministry of Finance recently issued a notification (No. 13/2026) on January 21, 2026, regarding income tax exemption.

The Central Government, using its power given by clause (46) of section 10 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 notifies “Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency” (PAN: AABTT6381N) for tax exemption. The Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency is an agency established by the State Government of Tamil Nadu. The government has granted tax exemption for the following specified income arising to the agency:

a) Money that the organisation gets regularly from the government, like the Tamil Nadu government or other official bodies to cover its day-to-day running costs.

b) Service fee received by Common Service Centres for providing online services to citizens.

c) Fees earned from software development projects and IT consultancy services provided to other State Government Departments, Public Sector Undertakings, and Statutory Boards, along with interest earned on advance funds received for various sponsored projects, pending disbursement from time to time.

d) Dividend received from CSC e-Governance Services India Limited (CSC-SPV).

e) Admin cost for PEC grants released by UIDAI to enrolment agencies via the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency, which acts as the enrolment registrar.

f) Revenue distribution for administering online examinations on behalf of other State Government Departments, Public Sector Undertakings, or Statutory Boards.

g) Any additional income that may be earned in the future, in connection with or to support the purposes of the society.

f) Interest earned on (a) to (g).

This benefit will only be made effective if the board “Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency, Chennai Authority”:

• Will not be involved in any commercial activity
• Activities and the nature of the specified income will remain unchanged through the financial years.
• Will file return of income in accordance with the provision of clause (g) of sub-section (4C) of section 139 of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

If the agency doesn’t follow these rules, the tax authorities may take action against the agency under the Income Tax Act, 1961, and the agency may lose the tax benefits the agency was given under section 10(46).

This notification is considered effective for the financial years 2024-25 and 2025-26, and it will also apply to the next three financial years: 2026-27, 2027-28, and 2028-29.